Cougars To Face South Carolina In Liberty Bowl
12/3/2006 12:00:00 AM | Football
Dec. 3, 2006
HOUSTON, Texas - Two days after capturing the Conference USA Championship and a berth in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl, the Houston Cougars learned today who they will face in their trip to Memphis, Tenn. The University of South Carolina accepted an invitation this evening to face the Cougars in the December 29th classic.
"This certainly is a marquee match-up," UH Head Coach Art Briles said. "South Carolina has played some good football this year, and so have we. It will be a challenge, and we are definitely up for it.
"This should be a game that our fans would like to see. We hope to see as many fans in Red and White at the Liberty Bowl on December 29."
Houston (10-3, 7-1 Conference USA), which won the league title on Friday night with a 34-20 win over Southern Miss, will match up with the Southeastern Conference's Gamecocks (7-5, 3-5 SEC) for the first time since October 5, 1974. The Cougars own a 2-0 mark against South Carolina.
The Cougars are riding a six-game winning streak heading into the AutoZone Liberty Bowl and receiving votes in both the USA Today/Coaches Poll (40 pts., 26th place) and the Associated Press (21 pts., 29th place). Led by Conference USA Offensive Player of the Year Kevin Kolb, Houston is averaging 32.8 points and 439.8 yards per game.
As for the Gamecocks, they finished in fifth place in the SEC's East Division; however, all five of their losses came at the hands of ranked opponents (#12 Georgia, #2 Auburn, #8 Tennessee, #12 Arkansas and #6 Florida). Legendary head coach Steve Spurrier, who won the 1996 National Championship while head coach at Florida, USC averages 25.5 points and 385.2 yards per game.
Spurrier is 1-0 against Houston, having knocked off the Cougars, 45-21, on Sept. 2, 1995, while at Florida.
Houston is making its 17th bowl appearance and third in four years under Briles. Last season, the Cougars took part in the Fort Worth Bowl for the first time in school history, falling to Kansas, 42-13. In 1996, the Cougars reached the Liberty Bowl, where they took on Syracuse and lost 30-17.
The UH-USC match-up marks the second time the Cougars have faced an SEC team in a postseason contest. Back on Dec. 31, 1969, Houston defeated Auburn, 36-7, in the Bluebonnet Bowl at the Astrodome.
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